UMSON’s Yvette Conyers Receives Grant to Advance Student Leadership in Nursing Policy
Yvette Conyers, DNP, RN, FNP-C, CTN-B, CFCN, CFCS, CNE, FADLN, CWCN-AP, assistant professor and associate dean for strategic engagement and impact at the University of Maryland School of Nursing (UMSON), has been named one of two recipients nationwide of the 2025-2026 American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Faculty Scholars Grant from the Foundation of Nursing, the philanthropic arm of AACN.
Conyers, selected from among 147 applicants, will receive $25,000 in support of her project, “Nursing Policy Academy: Experiential Learning to Advance Nursing Policy and Leadership.” The project seeks to implement and evaluate a one-year Nursing Policy Academy with 10 students from UMSON’s bachelor’s and master’s entry-into-nursing programs. The goal is to assess the academy’s impact on building policy competencies through hands-on experience in health care policy processes, enhancing leadership skills via direct interaction with policymakers and advocacy organizations, and fostering long-term engagement in policy advocacy efforts.
Learn more about Conyers’ work to advance nursing’s role in policy, leadership, and system transformation.